History

The Project for the Establishment of Primary and Pre-Primary Schools (PEPPS) has its origins in apartheid South Africa. The mandate of the Trust was to bring excellent education to previously disadvantaged communities at as affordable a price as possible.

PEPPS does not offer boarding facilities but rather tries to establish schools within the communities that we serve. The initial intention was to offer an education that contrasted completely from apartheid-era education by encouraging pupils to be critical and creative thinkers rather than rote learners. It was decided to empower the pupils by teaching in English and prioritising mathematical skills.

Two schools, PEPPS Motheong and PEPPS Edendale, were established in the late 1980s in Pretoria.

In Pietersburg, a group called the Pietersburg Private School Committee (PPSC) was formed with the hope of establishing a non-racial excellent independent school in then Pietersburg. That group heard about the PEPPS Trust in Pretoria and requested to establish a school under their banner.

PEPPS started to grow in Limpopo, establishing a number of pre-schools. Over time only PEPPS Mokopane, PEPPS Modjadjiskloof and PEPPS Ga-Ledwaba went on to open preparatory schools and PEPPS Polokwane opened a college that wrote the IEB Examinations in 1996. Sadly, PEPPS Modjadjiskloof has closed down. In 1991, PEPPS started in Koppiesfontein with a tiny staff and big dreams. In 1992, the school moved to the current campus in Mygenoegen and now operates as PEPPS Polokwane.

The beginnings of the school were humble, yet it has rapidly grown into one of the best independent schools in the Limpopo Province, boasting a habitual 100% matric pass rate and over 80% bachelor degree pass rate.

The Polokwane campus was headed by Mrs Carol Melville until 2010. She was succeeded by Mrs Leigh Melville and Mrs Julia Werner. It was pleasing to see racial diversity among the pupil body of Polokwane. In 2018, PEPPS Polokwane acquired another 8 hectares of land which has enabled the school to expand further and serve more pupils.

PEPPS Mokopane was headed by Mrs Charmain Geldenhuys from 1993-2002. Mrs Grace Meta took the reins for 2003, after which Mrs Annette van Wyk headed the school from 2004 until 2019 and she laid down a solid foundation of reputable teaching for the Mahwelereng community.

The long-established Lebowakgomo pre-school received land from the Ndlovu-Ledwaba Tribal Authority and started developing a preparatory school campus in 2016 under the leadership of Mrs Mokgadi Rabalao.

PEPPS will be opening a college in Mokopane in 2022 and would like to open a college in Ga-Ledwaba in the foreseeable future. The Board is exploring the option of opening a new campus serving the Ba-Mothapo community near Mankweng.

Mr Patrick Hamilton, then Headmaster of Waterkloof House Preparatory School, was the pioneer who initially started these three PEPPS Schools. Advocate Dikgang Moseneke was the first Board Chairman in 1991, followed by Mrs Dora Nkamana in 1992. Mr Chwaro Setloane became the Chairman of the Board, serving until 2000. PEPPS’s reputation for excellence became well appreciated in Limpopo and most of the schools established thrived.

Dr Arthur Ledwaba was a member of the founding Committee and has subsequently served as the Chairman of the Board since 2000. Along with a reliable and dedicated Board of Trustees, he has seen PEPPS continue to grow and set young people up to be leaders of the future.

As a non-profit company, PEPPS welcomes both corporate and individual donations to assist us in serving more South African pupils close to their homes and can issue Donation Tax Certificates. Our track record is proven and all monies collected from donations and through school fees are used exclusively for the betterment and expansion of our educational offering.

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